As if by agreement, or maybe decree by the empress herself, Diane Von Furstenberg, the dreariness that had settled over the first days of the fall shows vanished on Sunday with collections full of great clothes in vibrant colors.

Ms. Von Furstenberg led the way, as is her wont, with womanly dresses in wool jersey and separates like jumpsuits and gorgeous unembellished tops and skirts that showed the mileage you can get from a good cut. And Thakoon Panichgul had a fantastic show, a demonstration on how to take those fuddy-duddy couture shapes that designers love and make them young and modern.

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<strong>CAROLINA HERRERA</strong> A wool crepe day dress shown with a wool scarf and leather gloves.Credit
Evan Sung for The New York Times

Zac Posen also sent out a good collection, rich in color, though stuck in a lady-as-a-vamp time warp.

Ms. Von Furstenberg, whose front row included the usual news media superstars, like Diane Sawyer and Barbara Walters, has one of the best right hands in the business, Yvan Mispelaere, and she duly gives him credit. Less apparent perhaps is how they have built on her style without losing its cool, funky essence. And for a while that seemed to be happening as the clothes became overly polished, but not now.

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<strong>ZAC POSEN</strong> A short cocktail dress in a peony jacquard.Credit
Richard Termine for The New York Times

The opening dress, in berry-brown wool jersey that draped off one shoulder and fell to just below the knees, set the tone for what followed. The glamour was unforced, but more than that you didn’t feel that Ms. Von Furstenberg was maneuvering you toward her nearest sales counter, flogging you with products — a problem with a lot of shows nowadays.

This collection had a great range of wearable clothes that incidentally were glamorous, like a collarless wrap coat in wine-berry patent leather and a sleeveless blouse in cerulean blue crepe worn with a red crepe pencil skirt. The colors weren’t squeezed out of a standard juicer. And there were some clean-cut black wool jersey dresses that had leather or mesh panels, with a nice sense of movement.

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<strong>THE ROW</strong> A lambskin coat over a cashmere top and Lurex taffeta trousers.Credit
Arno Frugier

If you want to read an erotic message into Mr. Panichgul’s cherry satins, powder-puff furs and lip-print jacquards, be my guest. It’s all there, Humbert.

But you don’t need a back story to appreciate a well-made dress that winks at the modest style of late ’50s couture, offers the same eased-up fit, yet keeps its contemporary cool.

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<strong>THAKOON</strong> A hooded wool coat over a short skirt and matching knit camisole.Credit
Valerio Mezzanotti/NowFashion.com

Mr. Panichgul did that fake-out in a number of ways. A shapely heather-gray wool coat came with a stadium hood; it was shown over a short camel skirt with a slightly paper-bagged waistband and a matching knit camisole. He combined crinkled cherry patent leather with scarlet wool bouclé, for an immaculately seamed coat dress.

I can’t help thinking of the so-called young couture in Paris, and how most of it feels stuck in the same old rut. First of all, Mr. Panichgul doesn’t overwork the constructed shapes. Second, he includes a few vital gestures — like the allusion of an athletic hood or waistband — that keep the look connected to the present.

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<strong>DIANE VON FURSTENBERG</strong> A draped crepe top and pencil shirt, with satin opera gloves.Credit
Erin Baiano for The New York Times

Carolina Herrera’s clothes also felt connected, fresh. This was a wonderful show. It had a moody start, with indigo tweed suits and crepe wool dresses with tights and shoes a-matching, but then she began to play with airiness and a different paint box. Mulberry, lilac, deep purple, gray, a powdery shade of blue she called “Wallis.”

That blue was used for a crepe gown with what looked like a print of black vines or twigs coiling at the waist and embroidered with a few blood-red stones. Mrs. Herrera conveyed lightness with matching cropped jackets over gowns, and an evening skirt of layered purple chiffon with a feather-tipped purple crewneck.

“So chic!” whispered a guest at Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen’s presentation for The Row. Their straight-line coats in cashmere or wool gabardine, long skirts and wide-leg trousers were indeed understated. “Stripped down,” Ashley Olsen said when I remarked that their clothes seemed more conservative this season. The lines and cool monochromes bring to mind Martin Margiela’s Hermès and, as well, Zoran. Still, the look is The Row, and their slim, almost-to-the-ankle skirts make a statement.

Derek Lam’s collection was a head trip, as good as it gets. White satin coats and skirts printed with tiny red flowers, knee-length paisley jacquard dresses with pert collars, and a beautiful oversize white jacket with black buttons hinted that a woman’s relationship to her fashion is not purely based on what her heart tells her. She also likes things that suggest a complex life.

A version of this review appears in print on February 14, 2012, on page C10 of the New York edition with the headline: Things Turn in the Right Direction. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe